I've Known You
by He Fell For Fiction
Summary: Lucy Heartfilia's father insistently had her meet suitors for her to marry. She always never took to the boys. She had her reasons in why not. After a young coming out she gets a chance meeting with a young girl with scarlet hair. And she never forgot the girl again. (ErLu story, fluffy content)
1. I Want a Bride

**Hello everyone! Here is a fluff ErLu I've written. The story idea came from a Roleplay I'm doing with my girlfriend. The idea being that one of Lucy's betrothed was Erza. I thought of this as a story for the person I was rping with (author QueenBluestar10. She has an ErLu up if you're interested) but I decide to sort of tweak it and publish it here as a fluff since I don't have much time to work on my other ErLu story. So...enjoy and tell me if you want the next chapter up.**

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 **Layla Heartfilia's POV**

I sit at the dinner. Lucy and her doll, her 'little sister', sit at my left and Jude sits on my right. He sips his tea and looks at his watch. "Twenty minutes" he murmurs.

"You know half an hour away from your study won't kill you" I say.

"I know dearest." He looks down at Lucy and smiles. "How are you today, Lucy?"

"Great. I made a new outfit for Michelle!" She holds up the doll so we both can see the construction paper dress adorned by her. "Isn't it pretty?"

"That's very pretty" Jude says.

I softly smile. "Indeed."

"It's a wedding dress," she says, brightly smiling. "One day I want to have a pretty dress like hers."

"You will, and you'll have a husband with his handsome tux," I say.

"Or a wife with a pretty dress, too," Lucy tells us, speaking quietly.

Jude nearly slams down his water glass. "A girl…."He nearly glares at her.

"Y-yeah…d-daddy…I want to marry a girl…"she stutters.

I try to laugh it off. "Jude, she doesn't know what she means."

"I do! I want a relationship like you and daddy but…with another girl."

"Not allowed." Jude stands. "Nobles marry other nobles and I've yet to find another noble we have business to do with who has a daughter, let alone one who would…be like _that_." He walks off before another word can be spoken.

I grimace.

"Does he mean that…mommy?"

"No, sweetie, your daddy loves you no matter who you love." I kiss her cheek. "Now go, I'm sure the maid has drawn the bath for you."

"Okay mommy." She gets out of her seat and walks off.

I quickly walk to Jude's study. "What in the hell was that?" I ask him.

"You don't have a problem with it?" he grumbles.

"No. She's our daughter, Jude. Our only child, she deserves to be accepted for who she is. Having you lower her self-esteem by saying that she's…not normal or good enough isn't being what being a father is about."

"I didn't say it wasn't normal or good."

"You might as well have!"

He sighs. "What do you want me to do then?"

"She'll be going to bed in about half an hour. Go talk to her before she does."

"But in the future…she'll never be able to get married."

I walk closer to his desk. "We can make it work, if she marries someone who isn't a noble…so be it. As long as she's happy, I mean we worked into our rank, people can marry in. It's fairly blocked off but…sometimes that's how things work."

He sighs. "Alright, but it's going to take time to get used to it. Just…she's five…how could she know?"

"People just do sometimes. She's still our daughter. You still love her, right, Jude?"

"Of course I do!" He adjusts his suit jacket and stands. He walks to me and softly kisses me.

"Good." I smile. "And there can be noblewomen who love other women."

"I think I have an idea," he mumbles.

"Who?" I tilt my head.

In the customs you find a betrothed to your child at a young age. The fathers discuss, it's a deal they make most likely. Most of our 'friends' are 'fortunate' to have sons, so Jude has been talking to them, to get Lucy a husband but now that she is going to most likely have a wife…that'll prove to make things harder.

They have to know the other young, I guess so that they don't feel like they've been practically sold off to a stranger. I don't like this way of choosing our daughter's future like this.

"The Flora family," he says.

Thorne and Cynthia Flora, close friends of ours since before either of us got the status we have now. They started off before we did, turning the small family smith's shop into an empire, a chain, commonly known. Their family is also known for their magic ability. The boys become mason workers, making tools, armors and weapons and the women become knights, protecting others, but never really belong to a monarch, just the general public is who they protect without order.

They have a daughter a few years older than Lucy.

"You'll have to talk to Thorne then, let the girls meet."

"Yes I know." He walks to the door. "I'll be off to talk to my daughter now."

"Good."

 **Jude Heartfilia's POV**

I walk into Lucy's room. One of the maid's reads to her, usually Layla's treat. She stops reading a fairy tale and walks out after saying goodnight to Lucy. I sit at the edge of Lucy's bed. She looks down at her small hands.

"Darling…"I scoot a bit closer. "What I said earlier…I was just shocked by your words. You can love who you want..."

"Am I really never going to be able to find a wife?" she whispers.

"No, you're going to grow up to be beautiful, Lucy, and you're so kind and intelligent. It'll be easy to find a suitor but love…it's hard for everyone." I take her small hands into both of my hands. "You know all those boys you've been playing with?"

"Yeah…you said one day they might be my husbands…"

"Well…I think I have one girl you would probably have fun with."

Her face lights up. She always did that for Layla. I never really can make her so bright. I feel proud that I could this time. "Really?"

"Yes."

She jumps up and hugs me. "When, daddy?!" she squeals. Her loudness makes my head hurt a bit but I kept my smile.

"Soon, maybe in a week or so."

"Yay!" She kisses my cheek. "Thank you daddy. I love you!"

I smile and put her back into her place under her covers and tuck her back in. "I just want you to be happy, my little star." I kiss her forehead. "Now time to go to sleep."

"Okay, I love you, daddy."

"I love you, too, Lucy." I turn off the light and turn on her night light. I walk out and shut the door.

"Not so hard." I jump and quickly turn to see Layla. Damn her for scaring me!

"You shouldn't sneak up on me."

"Couldn't help it, you're easy to scare, dear." She kisses my cheek.

I roll my eyes. "You'll be the reason I keel from a heart attack."

She softly laughs. "Oh really?"

"Really." She's annoying. She's odd.

"You still love me though, right?"

"Of course." She's the love of my life. I wouldn't change a hair on her body.

"You think she'll find love?"

"I don't want to let her go."

I know I have to one day give my daughter away, but that doesn't mean I like it. She's my only child. I want her to be happy but, I just rue the day a man...or rather a woman will come in and sweep her off her feet and out of my life.

"Neither of us do."

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 **Thanks for reading. Please review and maybe even hit those follow/favorite buttons for fun? Have a nice day!**

 **-She Fell For Fiction**


	2. At First Sight

**Chapter 2 is up! Enjoy. This'll hopefully be a quickfire posting. The story won't be anymore than I think 6 or 7 chapters. Unless it gets enough requests for me to go past what I have currently done. But anyways, I hope you enjoy. This is my first fluff so please don't hate me if it sucks.**

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Lucy's POV

I look in the mirror as my mother ties a bow into my hair. I smile at her and grab my doll. "I can't wait to meet her" I say happily.

"Be warned, she's really shy." My mother sinks down to my level, she fixes the hem of my dress.

"Okay…"I look at her. "So her name is Erza?"

"Yes."

"What a weird name" I giggle.

"Don't say that when you meet her, it's rude."

"Okay, mommy."

"Good girl." She kisses my forehead. "Now your father and Mr. Flora should be talking. Mrs. Flora and Erza should be waiting for us in the garden."

She takes my hand and we walk through the manor and to the garden. I love the garden, all the pretty flowers, my mommy usually lets me pick them and we make bouquets.

I see a woman with brunette hair standing near the spider lilies. My mother walks over to her and hugs her. I look around to see someone moving around the edge of the garden. I walk over to see a little girl with scarlet red hair. She doesn't look at the flowers but is making a little circle of dandelions, the weeds of the garden. I walk over to her. "Hi, I'm Lucy" I say to her.

She looks up at me and holds up the little thing of dandelions. She stands so the way she holds it is over my head. I look up at her. Her eyes are a dark brown and her face has no emotion. She just is blank and places the dandelions on my head. "It's a crown" she says softly. Her voice is girly like every girl her age but it sounds stern, like she's ordering someone.

"Thanks…"I adjust it.

"My dad said that a man usually would bring a woman a gift when he wants to talk of betrothal. I thought…that would do" she murmured, her cheeks turning a shade of red to match her hair.

"It's pretty." I smile at her.

She softly smiles. I hold my doll closer to my chest. "Your doll is cute." She leans in closer to look closely at Michelle.

"It was a present from my parents."

"Ah." She looks off at our moms.

"Do you know how my parents know yours?" I ask her.

"My dad helped yours out when they were younger. Helped start all this." She looks around the estate.

I take her hand. "Let me show you around." I blush and pull her off. She doesn't say a word and follows.

"Your mother was a celestial mage."

"Yeah." I look back at her. "I want to be like her. I want to join a guild."

She looks off. "I don't have magic. I'm supposed to by what my dad says."

I look down at the fresh cut green grass. "A lady shouldn't have to be a knight."

"One should know how to protect their love." She stops in front of the tiger lilies, they're my favorite flowers. She kneels and picks one. "Your eyes went to these." She holds it out to me. "You like them?"

"Yeah..." I take it from her and look it over. "What's your favorite flower?"

"Roses." I pull her to the roses. I go to pick one but get pricked by a thorn.

"Owie…." I pull my hand away and hold it to my chest. I see the drop of crimson come from the wound and I tear up.

"Lucy." Erza takes my hand and looks it over. "It's just a little prick." She puts my finger in her mouth. I blush madly. She lets me go after a bit. "See? It's already stopped bleeding."

"Thanks!" I look at my finger to see the little red dot.

She puts her hand to my forehead. "Are you sick? You're really red."

"I'm fine." I look back at the manor. "Want to go to my room and play with my dolls?"

"Sure!"

We run into the manor, racing up to my room and to my dollhouse. I tell her the name of all my dolls and we start to play, setting up the home. There was the mommies and the kids. I like that I get to play with her. The boys that my daddy makes me play with never want to play. I'm glad Erza is here to play with me.

I saw that Erza took a liking to my doll Josie. "You want her?" I ask.

"No...she's yours."

"I have lots of dolls. And she makes you happy. I want you to be happy. Keep her. I'll see her anyway, when you bring her over when we play. I'll have her then." I smile at her.

She smiles back and we go back to playing. We end up playing until tea time.

Erza's POV

I really like this Lucy girl. She's really cute. I just want to keep her safe, like a knight would for a princess.

"So did you two have fun?" my mom asks me and Lucy. She puts her teacup down on the table.

"Yeah, I had fun," I say.

"Me too," Lucy says.

I roll the strawberry on the top of my cake around. "Erza, don't play with your food" my dad says sternly.

"Sorry," I mumble. I've never had strawberry cake, I don't even know if I like it.

"You know Lucy helped the cook make the cake," Mrs. Heartfilia says.

Does a man try his wife's cooking and baking even if it might stink? Most likely, so I guess I should try it then. "Hm…"I take a bite. It's the sweetest thing I've ever had. It's amazing. "It's really good!"

Lucy smiles at me and giggles. "You have frosting on your cheek, Zaza." Zaza? A nickname?

"Oh…"I wipe it away. "Thanks, Lulu." I guess I should give her one too.

I really enjoy being around this girl. It's been one day but I already feel all fuzzy around her. She's really pretty and cute. She's smart also. I already can't wait to marry her.

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 **God I hope I don't sound bad or make their thoughts and vocabulary too vast for their age. I hope you enjoyed the 2nd part. Reviews, favs and follows are loved. Critiques are appreciated. Until next time my friends.**

 **-She Fell For Fiction**


	3. I Love You

**Okay...so looking back at my plans I realized it'd be cruel I ended it the way I wanted to. So...I'm thinking of giving an alternate ending. Sort of a little added chapter to the ending I intend to give. Just thought I'd say so before you got into the next fluffy part. You probably skip this...okay. Enjoy. Thanks for reading.**

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Erza's POV

I look around the manor trying to find Lucy. We were playing hide and seek. I look in all the bedrooms and even in her dad's office. I check the garden and in the kitchen. I check behind the living room couch and in the den. But I can't find her.

I look in the library and look around. I hear a giggle as I pass a chair. I look behind and I see Lucy curled up. I sit next to her and hug her. "I found you," I mumble. I hated hide and seek. I didn't want to keep my princess out of my sight. Lucy liked being called either Lulu or princess. I was her knight or Zaza.

"Very good, my knight. Here's your prize." She holds up a pendant on a silver chain. The pendant had a constellation engraved onto it, it being the stars. It formed the constellation Arphodite.

"It's beautiful."

"To show our betrothal. I thought you'd like it. For my pretty knight." She smiles and puts it on my neck. "One day I want to love you…"

"I'd like that…"I place my hand on the pendant and smile at her. "I'll have to get you one."

"Okay."

"I'll have a sword engraved into it. To show that your knight will be there to protect you."

"Yay." She hugs me. "My hero."

I puff out my chest proudly and grin. I feel safer around Lucy. A knight needs her armor but with her, I feel secure without such things. I could take on anything with her and be okay. I'd feel secure.

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Lucy's POV

I walk around the manor, unable to sleep. I'm not supposed to leave my room but I couldn't sleep.

Nowadays Erza is around as much as she can. Sometimes we go to her home. Sometimes she and one of her parents sleep over so we can play more. Usually her mother is with her.

I walk through the balcony like hall that overlooks that ballroom. I see two figures. It's my mother and Erza. Erza is dancing around and giggling. She's dancing with my mommy. They are close, they have become like so over the time Erza has been around. I found out that my mother is her godmother and Erza's mom is mine. Though I barely have gotten to be around Mrs. Flora. She's quiet and reserved. I guess Erza got that from her mother because she was like that at first. I hope I can make Mrs. Flora open up soon. I want her to like me so she won't be bothered when I'm her daughter in the future.

I walk down. Erza sees me first and runs over to me. She blushes and bows. "W-would you like to dance, Lucy?"

I blush and nod. "I would love to." She pulls me close, the way a man would pull a woman in for a dance.

My mom looks at us with a small smile. "You two are so cute together," she says kindly.

Erza takes the lead in the dance. I barely know how to dance, just starting lessons, but she knows it quite well. "You're good…"I whisper.

"It's not that hard, the moves in fencing are more of a hassle," she says casually. "And ballroom dancing lessons have been part of my life since age four."

Soon momma leave us, going to get a book from the library so she can read me back to sleep. I hope she reads Key of the Starry Heavens. I love it when she does.

I'm left with this girl who holds me close and looks at me a woman looks at her husband, with love and care. I wonder if she'll always look at me like that. As we grow older and know each other better, draw closer to the day I marry her.

She stops dancing and just holds me. I can feel my heart speed up. She looks me in the eyes. "Lucy…"She rests her forehead against mine. I blush to the shade of her hair. "I…May I…do this…"She presses her lips to mine. I've seen adults kiss but I've never felt a kiss. It's warm and her lips are soft. She hugs me closer and keeps our lips together for another few seconds. I pull away. "I'm sorry! I shouldn't h-"

"Shut up, dummy." I hug her. "You weren't supposed to kiss me for a while."

"I couldn't help it."

Momma walks back awhile later. "You two should be heading back to bed," my mom says.

"Yes ma'am," Erza says.

"I can't sleep," I whine. "Can Erza sleep with me? Please mommy. Pleeeaase."

"Alright, if she wants to."

Erza smiles. "It's okay with me."

Momma takes us to my room and tuck us in. After she turns off the lights it's silent. I'm not next to her but I still can feel her body heat. "Lucy…"she says, breaking the silence.

"Hm?" I sit up.

She turns and looks at me. Her eyes sparkle. "I'm cold, can you come a bit closer?"

I know she's lying. Her skin would at least have some chill to it but all of her is so warm. I just allow her bluff and scoot closer to her. She hugs to me. I feel like a butterfly in a cocoon when she holds me, so wrapped up and safe. She doesn't have to be a wizard and she doesn't have to be a knight. Either way I know, with her, I'm safe.

"Erza…"I look up at her. I smile sleepily at her. "I love you."

She blushes madly. "I-I…"She hugs me tighter and buries her face in my hair. "I love you, too."

"Really?" I smile softly.

"So much…"

We've known each other for a few months. We spend almost every day together. She travels a lot to see me. I guess she really does love me. It was a matter of time we fell in love…but it was so fast.

I snuggle up to her and fall asleep. I can't wait to marry her.

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 **Final note: Thank you for reviewing, following and favoring if you have. I'm surprised I have 10 follows for this story on the first two chapters. It's not much but it makes me really happy seeing you take interest in my stories. Thanks.**

 **And if you haven't done either of those things, it'd be very much appreciated. I may not PM a review but seeing what you all think makes me happy and knowing you want to see more is just as amazing.**

 **I hope to have the next chapter up soon. Depends on how much work I get from my teachers tomorrow or the rest of the week. So outlook so far so good. Have a nice day.**

 **-She Fell For Fiction.**


	4. Weak, Cold, Dead and Wilted

**Warning: Things get tragic. Heed my warning but please do go on!**

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 **Erza's POV**

Good people exist. Heroes exist. My family is known for the heroic women in it. My grand mother runs a guild and my aunts are all in it. They protect people and keep them safe. I don't have the magic needed to be like them. I never minded. I just want to be able to protect Lucy.

...But I wish I had it now. I wish I was brave enough to fight and not just run. I wish I was strong enough to be like the women before me and protect my own. I wish I was able to save my parents. But I'm not and I couldn't.

I hear another girl's cries. I find her. She's about Lucy's age and has purple hair. She's calling for her brother and crying. Out in the open and I can hear the men who caused the chaos in my home to be happening. I lead her off and have her hide in an empty crate. I'm not strong...but there are people weaker than me and I'll protect them if I can. "Stay here."

"What about you?" she whimpers.

"I'll find somewhere else to hide."

"There's one!" a man hollers. I jerk to the side and see three men. I run, running faster than I ever had. I loved to run, but now it wasn't a pleasure, just a defense since I couldn't fight. They catch me and I feel hands press over my mouth and nose. I can't breathe. It's all going fuzzy. It goes black but I don't think of my parents. All I think is...

Does this mean I'll never see Lucy again?

 **Lucy's POV**

I sit outside my parents' room. I can't be in the room when the doctor is checking up on my mommy. She became really sick all of a sudden. It kept getting worse after that. A few weeks after we found out she was sick Erza stopped visiting. I don't know what I did wrong…she just stopped. I ask my daddy but he just grimaces and tells me to go back to my studies. I ask my mommy but she just frowns and says that it wasn't my fault, but I feel like it is. I even tried calling the Floras but they never pick up anymore.

Mommy keeps getting weaker. She used to always take walks around the garden but now, she hardly even gets out of bed. Sometimes, I get to crawl into bed with her and she reads to me but usually she has to rest.

My father has become more secluded. He talks with the doctor about my mom, gives her what she needs and then just goes to his office. I try to go in there but he just shoos me away.

It's been six months since my mommy got sick. I sit in my room hugging to my doll and look down at her little dandelion crown. It's all dead and wilted. Erza made it for her the last time she came to visit about five months ago. She smiled as she put it on and said that now my doll matched me. She promised me she'd always be there but why isn't she here now? She said she'd be there but she isn't. She left when I needed her most. That isn't what a wife does.

My father walks in. "Lucy, your mother wants to see you…"His voice is full of sadness. I stand and walk with him to the bedroom. The doctor stands outside along with some of the maids. They weep and the doctor is just stoic, mumbling 'I'm sorry' over and over again. I walk in with my father to see my mother laying in the bed. Her cheeks are hollow and she looks tired. She's so much thinner than she was six months ago and her pale skin has a sickly grey tint to it.

I crawl into bed next to her. "Mommy…"I hug her but I'm gentle with her, I know she's weak.

"Sweetie…"She strokes my hair. "You have to promise you'll be strong. I love you so much…"

I start to softly cry. "M-mommy you're speaking like you're going to die…y-you said things are going to be okay…"

"Things will be okay." She kisses my forehead. "Grow up and know that I'll always be smiling down at you from heaven. I'm not gone forever, darling." She takes my hand and places her celestial keys in my hand. "Here are some friends to protect you."

"Your celestial keys…mommy…you said never to touch these."

"When you're older, you'll need them." She kisses my cheek. "I love you, my little girl." She kisses my other cheek. "Promise me you'll try to be happy in life." She whispers in my ear, "all answers you want from me I'll give if you ask."

I have so many to ask but one hangs in my head. "Where is she?" I ask.

She frowns. "Sweetie…I don't know. None of us do."

"But…"I cry harder. "Mommy…"

"Shh…"She drags her thumb over my cheek, wiping away the tears. "You'll fall in love again. But...If she's the one you'll find her." She kisses the tip of my nose.

"Is this the last time I see you?" I whisper.

"For a long, long time."

I rest my head on her shoulder. "I don't want you to go."

"I love you…my little star. My blessing…my everything."

"Mommy…I…"Her hold loosens and she lays back. Her eyes draw close. "Love you, too."

I get off the bed and hug to my father. He doesn't hold me. He's stands there, not moving. He's cold. I miss Erza's warmth even more.

"D-daddy…"I look up at him. He walks out, pulling me with him.

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 **Lucy's POV**

A few days later we had mommy's funeral. The Floras aren't there. They would've been here. I know they would have. What did mommy mean? Did they go to heaven like her? How did they end up dying? They...they can't be dead. They just left. Erza just left.

I hate her. I hate her. She left me when I needed her. That's not what a girl does to a girl she loves. I hate her. She gave no warning, a word would've been something, but she just walked away. She's heartless! So heartless...I needed her, I cried alone with no one. I stand here alone. I hate her and I never want to see her again. Who could love one who just abandons you with no word?

I hold tighter to Michelle. The dandelion crown, wilted and dead falls to the ground. The brownish gold color of the petals make me think. I hate her but sadly...I'll always love her. The hate...over masks the love. But still...I wanted to see her again.

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 **Hope you're okay after this...I don't want to make ya'll sad. Thanks for reading.**

 **-She Fell For Fiction**


	5. Find you, Forget you

**Chapter 5! Haha, this'll be longer than I thought. Again I say this was a story for my gf and then it sort of became more because I just took snippets of the originally M story that had a lot of tones from our rp and modified it to be K+ and more understandable. It'll lack some details because it is supposed to be a context of this happened before the anime/manga, and it will later mention events that happened. However, I do not plan to go into too much detail, because that'll be annoying and I just want to keep posting stuff instead of having to go back and fact check myself. It'll be brief, seeming more series of one-shot-esque, but it'll be a story with angst and fluff.**

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 **Erza's POV**

 _ **One year after Erza was taken (Lucy 6, Erza 8)**_

I sit in my cell at the tower of paradise. I've been here for months, possibly a year. They've beat me, tortured me and worked me till the point to where I collapse from exhaustion. They've taught me that to forget my past. I remember only fragments...my mom...my dad...they're dead. I was in love with a girl but….fear has kept me from remembering her. I try to picture her face everyday as I try to sleep but...it keeps getting harder and harder to picture. She had brown eyes...no blue? That can't be right. Her name was Layla? No...that's her mother's name, I think she loved to read and write. Not much to remember, saying I was betrothed to her.

I can feel Jellal's eyes on me. I know he's worried. He's been able to cling to his past, everyone has. I just...can't. It's like they don't want me to remember it. When I cry about it they beat me. It brings me pain now to think of her. Hell, I even have been stripped of my real name. Erza Scarlet. Erza Flora died the day they took me and all that's left is the slave. Not a noble, but a little twerp that does the hard work for a cult.

He strokes my hair and holds me. As my memory of her fades I feel my feelings of him grow. At first it scared me but now it just...makes me curious. I like girls, I love girls. He's just...something to hold on to. That's what we all need in this prison.

I never talk about my past, what I remember at least. The cult doesn't believe homosexuality as good so I'm scared of telling anyone. What if they told the guards or the guards overheard me? I'd be in so much trouble.

"Erza," Jellal says, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Have they really wiped you of your past?"

"Mostly, have your memories stuck?" I whisper.

"Mm-hm." He looks at me, his lips curled in a warm smile. "I'm sure one day you'll get them back." His lips press to my forehead.

I feel a memory creep up on. Soft, pink, tiny lips. They were pressed against mine. My first kiss was with the girl. I smile at the memory. "I think so."

One day I hope to remember her fully. Once I do, I'm going to find her and finally marry her.

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 **Lucy's POV**

 _ **Eight Years After Erza's gone missing: Lucy's age: 14 and Erza's: 16**_

It's confusing to me how a man could change so much. It's been years since I've lost Erza and since my mother had passed. I tried to stay happy and make my father happy. He became more engrossed by the business as if that was all he had. I wasn't his daughter anymore, I was something to see off to the highest bidder. He's tried to get me engaged to several men, some more than double my age. No women. He's given up on that.

I know he loves me but I feel he just doesn't care anymore. I just feel like a burden, a pest to him. He calls me one whenever I try to speak to him. He works, he travels, he speaks to the father's of boys in who I am forced to get to know. They ask me of my past and when I get to my childhood where Erza was part of it they tell their father they refuse to marry me. After it happening by accident the first few times it became my escape plan. I'd tell them at one point and it usually turned them off to the idea of being with me. It if didn't, them presuming that I took to both genders I'd try to be kind and tell them that I just wouldn't be able to be with him because of my attractions. That doesn't work I end up losing my quiet little cover up and when I show my true colors, basically becoming something more than a floor mat, they tell their fathers it's a no go. Boys have more saying in this than women. Men are what their fathers wanted. Women are what their fathers have to get rid of and work to get profit with.

My father never wanted me to learn magic but I've made contracts with the spirits my mother gave me. Bero's been such a help.

I know what I want to be. A mage. I remember this one day where I went to visit my father, taking a carriage. The horses went renegade. I was completely terrified. Then this woman helped me. She had an odd mark on her hand. It was pink and sort of looked like a flame. I guess it was supposed to be like a fairy. What Spetto told me, it being a guild mark from the guild Fairy Tail it made more sense for it to be a fairy.

But there is one thing that makes me feel so drawn to that guild.

Their poster child, their pride, their strongest female mage. They called her the Titania. A woman with blood red hair.

The woman was named Erza Scarlet, but I couldn't help but pray it could possibly be my love. I just wanted to see her somehow. It was unlikely but Erza is not a very common name and scarlet hair is even rarer when natural. I just wanted to see.

I still loved her. Every day she fell into my head. Every little detail stuck in my head like it was engraved into my mind. My mind aged her as I did. I couldn't accept the fact she died. I just couldn't. She most likely was dead, but I couldn't stand to just think the girl who stole my heart was gone forever.

I want to find her, but I can't if I'm stuck in this mansion like a sort of princess in a castle. I can't wait for my knight to sweep me away, I have to find her.

I feel Fairy Tail and freedom itself is the key to so.

 **Erza's POV _(At age 14) (I will be jumping around. Not all of the parts in a single chapter will be exactly chronological) _**

Three years. I been a member of Fairy Tail for three years. I only came here because of Grandpa Rob. That guild mark on his back...the last thing I saw of him before he vanished.

I took to my family's magic. The knight. I kept the name, Erza Scarlet. Felt that I had no right to be Erza Flora anymore. I wanted to start fresh anyway and almost everyone knew the name Flora. They knew the tragedy. They'd know my story. I don't want anymore to know. Ever. I want to be locked away. I want to be hidden. I don't want to remember my past anymore. It just caused me pain. It made me want to be alone. Being around others just made it harder to think of them. I cried over my losses. I cried for my family, my old friends and her. I cried over them all when I was alone.

Then I stopped. I was caught crying by a boy in my guild, Gray. I said I liked to be alone, and he asked if I was happy to be alone then why did I cry. I guess he was right. I shouldn't just cry about it. So I took to the armor I wore and put some on my weak and shattered heart, and I cried on the inside instead of the outside.

I liked it in Fairy Tail. It was a family. The master reminded me of my father in a way, how his words were wise yet his personality playful. I had enemies, that was a given. Still we were a family. I was always grateful to the master for taking me in and giving me something I could never repay. So whenever someone was out of line, I'd put them back in their place so they didn't make him and the guild look bad. Okay...I guess I get out of line, but I can't help it. People trigger something in me. Like I have to prove myself, protect something or they just flat out anger me. It's an impulse nowadays and sometimes I take it too far because I just have never gotten used to be being so strong. It was like I couldn't stand on my own two feet on one second and the next I was a one person army.

I became like the women before me, but I was a late bloomer. Most of the women in my old family got it as young as four, but I didn't get it until eleven. It angers me...

Where was all this when I was being taken away? When I needed it most...

* * *

 **Like always, remember to review, follow and fav. Maybe even check out my other ErLu (but that is M rated so proceed with caution)? Anyways! Thank you for reading.**

 **-She Fell For Fiction**


	6. Finding You

**Why hello there my pretties. Next chapter is up. Time for me to have some fun in the next chapters. (As in slowly die as I get constant writer's block) Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Lucy's POV _(Had recently just joined. The initial sighting)_**

I sit in the guild. I had just joined. Fairy Tail, it's an odd guild. I sit at the bar when I hear a man name Loke shout. "Erza's back!"

Erza….

I heard Natsu and Gray mention her. They'd go on about a monster of a woman, someone to fear, someone too powerful to handle. It can't be her. She wasn't a wizard. She's kinder than the woman they describe. Well, that was Erza the girl, not Erza the woman. Who am I kidding? Erza's dead. I don't know how but I'm near positive she it.

The door to the guild opens and a silhouette of a woman is all I can see. She holds a huge horn over her head. She walks in and I see her features. I nearly gasp.

"She's really pretty," I say to Mira, the bartender.

Erza puts down the horn and she starts speaking to the members of the guild. She's stern and almost pissed off. About the mistakes they make.

"She may be a bit bossy but she's saner than anyone else in the guild. I don't see why everyone's so afraid of her."

Erza walks over to the bar. She smirks at Mira. "Hello, Erza, I see your job went well," Mira says.

"Yup." Erza sat on the stool next to me. She chats with Mira and orders a piece of strawberry cake she ordered the second she sat down. She loved that stuff. She just seems like the girl I knew. How she talks, her smile, her eyes...well, one of them is duller, doesn't really have a shimmer like the other one does but they still seem like her eyes. The eyes that I'd look into and blush.

Erza's alive. No mistaking it's her. The scarlet hair is the final give away.

It was thirteen years ago that we...started a friendship. It wasn't a relationship, we were friends that were to become a couple. She finally mastered her magic? The knight…

"Anyways, Erza, meet Lucy."

Erza looked at me. I look back at her. "Nice to meet you," I say flatly.

She looks at me. I see the eye that was off lacked a natural shine to it, it wasn't dull like it was vacant, it lacked the shine eyes have naturally, the film over them to protect them. Like the tear glands don't work so it isn't as as shiny as the other. She leans in close to me. "Do I know you?" she asks.

I shrug. She doesn't even know me. Well, she did leave me. Why did I cry over her? Why did I hope to one day find her? What did I expect? For a happy ending? This isn't a fantasy like our mothers read to us.

"You remind me of someone," she says softly. She pulls away.

"Who?" I ask.

"Just some girl...it was a long time ago. I'm positive she hates me, though."

"Why did you stop seeing her?"

"How did you know I stopped seeing her?" She looks at me, curious.

I cringe slightly, but I quickly find something to say. "If she hated you, then she wouldn't be around you."

"I just couldn't...I don't even remember her."

Erza walked out. She's changed a lot.

I look at Mira. "Is she single?"

"Yeah. She's all yours if you want her."

I blush madly. "A-as if!"

"You know she's trouble, right?" I look at Cana. She's a mage who can really hold her liquor. She drinks practically all day.

"How so?" I ask.

"She beats up people who ask her out or she merely breaks their heart. She says she needs to focus on other things besides dating. She's just being a jerk when she does it."

"Or she's scared," Mira says.

"Her? Scared?" Cana asks.

"She's odd...hardly any of us know her past. She looks at things with longing stares, like she wants to know the truth behind it. She reads children's fairytale stories for christ's sake. She probably faced a lot of emotional stuff as a kid…"Mira sighed.

"She looks familiar," I mumble.

"She knows you, you know her, how?" Mira asks.

"I think she was my neighbor," I lie.

"I don't see Erza having a family...I think she was made purely to be strong. She probably was a lab experiment or some sort of living doll they made, why she seems to lack emotion," Cana joked.

"Don't joke like that. I'm positive she had a family. She came here without anyone. She was alone. She was missing an eye and covered in cuts and bruises. I think her family was killed some way," Mira says.

The Floras...they really did die? I thought was just a scenario but it actually happened. I hated Erza all these years but she couldn't control her own future, being so young.

But...why doesn't she remember me? I know it's been thirteen years but, we loved each other. I knew it was her seconds flat.

Whatever...I guess I finally know. But she doesn't remember. What exactly happened to her?

* * *

 **Thank you for reading!**

 **-She Fell For Fiction**


	7. Life Isn't So Sweet

**I'm back! Sorry for taking so long. I really have no excuses, but here it is. This falls after their first job with Eisenwald and near the Gaulna Island incident. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Erza's POV**

I take a deep breath and walk through the town to that small house Natsu told me about. "Just greet her. She's a team member…"I mutter. I get to the house and walk up the second floor. I gulp and raise my hand to knock. I gently rap my armored fist against the wooden door and considered running when I heard Lucy's footsteps on the inside. No! I can't run. She's a new member of fairy tail and I should get to know her.

She answers the door and looks surprised to see me. "Erza! I didn't expect to see you here. Well, I'm surprised you came to the door. The guys usually just invite themselves in." She smiles. "Sorry, I was just writing…"She blushes. I study her for a moment. She wore a pair of boxers for shorts and a tank top that barely contained her, but still seemed to be innocent. She was stunning I'll admit. She is beyond beautiful and just so cute. Just something in her smile seemed oddly familiar. The familiarity is just something I can't put my finger on. An old crush of mine? No, the only girl I was with was _her._ She…well, I only knew a few things anymore. Loved writing, had a mother named Layla and was very open with herself and lacked any shame with her identity.

"Hello, Lucy. I just wanted to get to know you after our first mission together. We didn't get much time for pleasantries during the whole Eisenwald debacle." I walk into the apartment and look around. "Nice place you got here."

"Thanks!" She walks into the kitchen. "Would you like a drink?"

"I'm fine. Do you by any chance have any—"

"Strawberry cake?" She walks out holding a slice of strawberry cake.

"Yes…how did you know? I love strawberry cake!" I grin. I take a bite and I feel an odd feeling of nostalgia rush over me. I can't quite put my finger on it…

"I just happened to make one." She smiles sheepishly and puts the plate down on the kitchen table. I sit down and grab the fork on the plate. "So you've been in Fairy Tail since you were a kid, but what happened to you before then?"

I tense and shiver. "I don't like talking about it."

"Oh…I'm sorry," she apologizes.

"You wouldn't want to talk of your past, would you?"

"No. I understand that it's not always the best." She looks in pain. No…longing for something?

"So that job…"I change the topic.

"Yeah, it was quite the challenge. But you seemed to know what you were doing. You're magic actually is quite beautiful. You're like an actual knight in shining armor to people. You protect them!"

I blush slightly but brush it off with the wave of my hand. "It's nothing. It's what I agreed to be when I joined Fairy Tail. You can be someone's hero as well."

"I hope to be."

I take a bite of her cake and moan. "Oh my god this is amazing." I haven't tasted something this amazing since I was a kid. Jesus Christ, it's like heaven!

"It's not that good…"She blushes and tucks a stand of hair behind her ear.

"It is. It's better than Mira's."

"Well I've made it since I was five," she tells me.

"Heh….I knew a girl who made a cake like this. I was six when I knew her. She was about the same age when we met."

She looks down at me. She smiles, but her eyes look clouded. Sad? Intrigued? I couldn't tell. "Is that so? What was her name?" She sat across from me. I almost sensed an urgency in her voice.

"I don't remember. I just remember little snippets of her…"I shake my head. "Never mind it. I don't really talk about my past. I would love to hear about you." Like your mother's name.

She frowns and shakes her head. "I'm the same…I don't like talking about my past. Me currently? I'm just trying to be a celestial wizard like I've always wanted to be and try to publish the next great novel." A writer? Better yet, a writer with a talent with celestial spirits and eyes that contain the universe within them.

"Oh! Can I read your novel?" The girl I knew, she would let me read what she wrote. It wasn't much, but at that age, it amazed me. I loved her short little stories and poems. They were always so sweet. She usually did romance. Her way of writing was rather pillowy and romantic. They made you want to fall in love with her. She wrote a scary story once and it was terrifying to my young mind. I wonder how Lucy wrote.

"Hell no," she snaps. Well, that was a bit uncalled for. It seems she's prone to an escalation of moods when slightly provoked. It seems I'll have to wary.

"Okay…sorry." I lick frosting from my lips. I see Lucy's eyes do a subtle sweep from the corner of my eye, but they quickly return to looking back at me. "What do you write about?"

"Um…I like to write several different genres at a time. I have a bad habit of starting a new story when I'm stuck on a story. That leads me to leave stories untouched for months on end."

"How many stories are you juggling right now?"

"Um…four, I have two romances, one horror, and one mystery."

"Levy must love you." I chuckle and smile at her. "I heard she's the only one knowing the pleasure of reading your stories."

"Yeah, she's been a help. She's my unofficial editor." She smiles softly. "She's quite nice."

"Indeed, she is, but she's hardly around. She takes a lot of jobs."

"I've seen. We were planning on meeting up today." She huffs and looks down at the table. I look at her hands and see the pen ink on her fingers. She must use a dip pen. The black was lustrous ebony, but parts seemed graying and tinted blue by the fading of cleanings. Small spots of pale skin peeked through the deep color.

"You wrote her some new chapters?" I question.

"Having someone reading it makes me more motivated to write," she explains.

"Especially someone so cute."

"I suppose…I mean I guess she's cute!" She blushes and rubs over her guild mark.

"So bi or lesbian?" Last main part of her. I feel having, at least, some things remembered to be in this girl, it could be something. It was highly unlikely. Hell…why am I longing for her? It's been a decade. She could've easily found another woman. She could be engaged to someone else for all I know.

Her eyes widen in surprise. "What!?"

"I'm just curious." I tilt my head. "You wouldn't be alone. Mira is bisexual and so is Cana. I'm a lesbian myself."

"I'm not really comfortable with telling you that, Erza!" She flushes dark red. I shake my head and sigh. It must not be her. Just a coincidence that she writes I guess. I suppose that isn't an uncommon thing. Everyone has tried to write a story. God knows I have tried to create memoirs and journals, a way to pour myself out and try to let everything go.

"Sorry. Can we brush past this?"

"Fine." She rubs her temples. "You're not shy with people, are you?"

"Well…usually." _You're just too familiar for me to feel uncomfortable, but you're not her. Life isn't so sweet._ "I should go. I have a job to go on." I stand. "Thank you for the cake, Lucy."

"It's no problem."

I smile at her before leaving. I shake my head upon leaving. "Goddammit."

 **Lucy's POV**

I frown after she goes. What the hell sort of questions was that? I didn't want our meeting to be like that. I mean she caught me without makeup and I was in my pajamas. She must've thought I was such a slob. And what was with her asking me if I was gay? Wait…is she attracted to me? Oh, I hope that's how it is. But she doesn't know I'm her old betrothed. Does that mean she's moved on? Forgotten me? Or does she want me because she remembers me?

"Argh! This is confusing!" I groan and fall onto my bed.

"Lucy!" Natsu flies in with Happy.

"Get out!" I throw a pillow at him, but he ducks it.

"I got us a job." He drops a flyer into my lap. "It pays a lot!"

I look at the flyer and swallow, feeling a lump in my throat form. "This is an S-class job."

"Yeah, Happy snatched it up for us."

"This is a bad bad idea!" I squeak.

"It offers a golden gate key as well," Happy says slyly.

"A golden…gate…key." I sigh, "fine. Let's go.

"Alright!" Natsu cheers.

* * *

 **Thank you all for reading.I'm praying that this was enough to make up for the fact it's been two months since I've updated (It took a while because I kept rewriting the story and it just got really annoying. I had some writers block. Just the usual.) I hope to have the next chapter up by next year (haha). Thank you for following the storing and making it your favorites. And all those reviews give me life. Seriously. And all those people who follow me as an author I love you.**


	8. My Present

**Lucy's POV**

I looked around the basement of the guild. Everyone looked so depressed and half were set on becoming drunk. I sighed and stood up from my seat. "I have to get out of here," I whisper. I walk upstairs to what was the actual guild. I saw Erza sitting in a corner and looking at the destruction done to her guild, the destroyed place that was her home. "Erza," I call. She looks at me and frowns.

"Lucy…have you made your contract with Sagittarius?" she asks softly. I place my hand to my keys. That was my new key. The only part of the reward from Galuna island that Erza had let us take. I would have liked the money for rent, but I was happy to have gained a new spirit. Even happier she chose the option that could only please me. "You could end up needing him soon."

"Yeah…right." I studied the golden key. "Why did you just pick that part of the reward?"

"A spirit needs a home. There are a lot of celestial wizards that could have gotten that key. There are bad ones out there. Abusers and ones who make them shields. I once knew a celestial wizard." Her eyes glassed over at the memory. She was talking about my mom. I just knew it. "She treated them like they were good friends. She taught her to do the same."

"Her?" I question, hopeful.

"I loved a girl once. Never loved again after that…"She stood. "But that's not important. Our Nakama is what matters now."

"You'd never be with her?" I feel demoralized at that.

"I wouldn't pick her over the guild. I wouldn't pick her over any comrade. I haven't seen her in thirteen years. I…have forgotten a love that sweet. It was a childish love. Temporary. She is probably engaged to someone else. Her father was eager to have her married."

 _Indeed, he was…_., I lamented silently. Why I wanted to run.

"What if she wasn't married? And what if you didn't have to pick her over your comrades? I mean…if she was another mage?"

"That isn't impossible. She always talked about wanting to be one." She smiled at the memory. I fought back blushing. "I guess I would try to get her back. I'd spend my days to make her fall back in love with me."

 _But I never fell out of love._

"I would keep her from crying as much as I could. Or at least, dry her tears."

 _You've missed so many tears…_

"If I got her back…I'd never let her go. I'd…marry her. I'd marry her as soon as I could."

 _Please…_

She frowns. "But that isn't what matters. We have a possible war on our hands." She takes my hands. "What's important is protecting those we love who are here with us. In this guild."

* * *

 **Erza's POV**

I run through the town, still clutching to the small communication lacrima. I hear Mira's voice faintly from it. I shove my way through the crowd as the words reverberate through my head.

 _Phantom Lord took Lucy._

"I know where you are…"I mutter and run faster. I felt the banging of my armor along with my pounding heart.

 _They took Lucy. She was taken while on a run for supplies. The element four had taken her._

I had never taken a life…but I felt the bloodlust for those who hurt her. Juvia of the Great Sea, Monsieur Sol, Aria, and Totomaru…they were going to pay! Gajeel would also feel our wrath.

"Close…"I mumble. I look around the forest, following the limestone path. I see a tower and feel two syllables bubble through my throat and fall off my tongue desperately. "LUCY!" I see a dot of blue and pink. It plummets down to the ground and I sprint. "LUCY!" I see her closing in on it, her golden hair shimmering in the light. I dive and catch her. I assume I had to have bruised or even broken bones, but the adrenaline pulsing through my veins kept me from noticing anything. "Oh thank god…"I whisper and hug her close, her lying on top of me. I break her handcuffs and check her quickly for injuries.

"You're okay," I whisper. I stand up. "Let's get back-…Lucy?" I look down to see her crying pitifully.

"This is all my fault!" She sobs and grips to her skirt.

"How…"I pick her up and hold her close as if she were a child suffering the fear of a boogie man.

"They did all of this to get me," She whimpers. Her sobs melt into hiccups and tears pour down her guilt flushed cheeks. Her nose looked raw and she shook with her cries.

"Shh…"I whisper soothing and kiss her forehead. "Lucy, it's not your fault."

"It is! Erza…they want me because of my father! He put a bounty on me to get me home."

I swallow. "Y-your father?"

She frowns and looks down. "I-I want to go back to the guild."

"Yeah…"I mutter sheepishly and walk off. "It would cost a lot to get this done…they could be jailed for years and disbanded because of this."

"My father owns the rail company. The Heartfilia company. I never told anyone my name because I didn't want you all to think I was some rich brat." She sniffles. "But I'm the reason the guild was destroyed. I'm the reason Levy, Jet, and Droy were nearly killed!" She sobs loudly, burying her face in the crook of my neck.

 _A Heartfilia. Why does that name ring a bell?_

"Your…father's name is…"I start, but my tone doesn't fit it. I sound like I'm asking.

"Jude." She covers her eyes. "He must want to get me back just to marry me off."

 _The girl's father wanted her to marry as soon as possible. No…he was concerned for her happiness. What could make a man change his morals so drastically? No! Why am I asking that? Lucy isn't her. That'd be impossible. And she doesn't matter right now. My past love doesn't matter. I have to protect Lucy. She's the present._

* * *

 ** _Okay, this is way too short, but I'll work to get the next chapter up as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!_**

 ** _-She Fell For Fiction_**


	9. Clarity?

**And the chapter quickly promised is quickly done. For once I got a chapter up in a timely manner. Heh! This chapter is filled with dashes of angst, like the entire story so far. I had no regrets.**

* * *

 **Erza's POV**

Lucy's apartment feels so small and cold without her in it. We had broken into it so many times because it was warm…but today it didn't. Why wasn't she here?

"She's not in the bathroom!" Natsu calls.

"Where's Lucy!?" Happy whines and he opens a cupboard above Lucy's desk. "Wah!" He gets covered with countless letters.

"Letters? What is this?" Natsu grabs a handful and rips the wax seals.

"Hey! You shouldn't do that," Gray snaps, but he had a handful. I look at the story on Lucy's desk and run my fingers over the grain of the wood of the chair.

"Mom, I saw Erza…she's beautiful and so strong…"Natsu reads. Why didn't say she met me? It's just…an odd wording.

"Heh…"I blush and look down. I swallow and grab a small sheet of paper. 'I'm going home' was neatly scrawled on it.

"Erza?" Gray questions.

"She went home," I mutter.

"We gotta get her back!" Natsu hops up and runs out. I drop the note and follow quickly.

Lucy went home…is she going to leave the guild? She can't! She can't leave her Nakama. We're family. We need each other.

* * *

 **Lucy's POV**

I clutch to Supetto as she weeps. I look around the workers that had raised me. They ask about how I've been with my studies and if I've found any women that I want to be with. It made me feel homesick for a moment. They were all so sweet…

"Lucy, your father wishes for you to come see him in the main study!"

 _He really hasn't changed…he won't come out to see me._

I was put into an old dress of mine. I study the patterns and smile softly. My eyes scan over the floral design as I walk to the study, keeping my courage in my heart instead of allowing it to deteriorate. I push the doors open. "It's nice to see you…Father." I look up at my dad. He had seemed to have aged a bit in the year. The stress always got to him. Mama always worried about his heart because of it.

"I'm glad you've returned, Lucy," he tells me. I hang my head.

"I apologize for leaving home without a word…I deeply regret my actions," I say weakly.

He looks at me; studying me closely and making me feel small. "You've made a wise choice. If you had stayed at that guild…I would've been on the verge of using my wealth to destroy it." I feel my chest clench and I focus my gaze on the polished tiles of the floor. "You've finally grown up, Lucy. You've seem to have learned an important lesson of just how destructive your actions can be if made selfishly. _You_ a _re a Heartfilia_. You live in a different world than everyone else." He sighs softly and paces about the room. "The reason I have called you back is because your husband has been decided."

 _You haven't changed_ , I think.

"It is prince Sawalu, of the Julenelle. I'm sure you remember he expressed great interest in you. He was able to overlook your little acts."

"Yes…he did." I frown.

"By marrying into the family, we'll be able to expand the rails South. It'll be of great value to the Heartfilia company," he goes on, staring out at the garden. I know in the distance he can see my mother's grave. How could he look at her as he spoke such things out of the character of the man she married! "You'll be expected to bore a son, so that we can continue the Heartfilia name…that is all, Lucy. You may go to your room."

"Father," I call. "You're mistaken about my reasons for coming back. I'm here to apologize for running away. I shouldn't have left without a word…"I frown. "But I'm not coming back! I'm leaving this house."

He looks at me, completely flabbergasted. "Lucy…"

"I'm going back to the guild and I will choose who I marry!" I cry. "Father I can't be this thing you can sell off. And to men!" I shake my head. "Why was it so easy to understand I liked girls when I was achild but now that I am actually able to be sure of my attractions you ignore it! Did the Floras and mom's death just made you forget your moral compass and allow you to just put a marriage above your only child's happiness!?"

"Lucy!"

"No! Don't you dare lay a finger on my guild again! They're my family…."I frown and rip my dress. "I'm done! I don't need this life of money and beautiful clothes! I wanted to come here and talk to you as equals…but I see that I cannot get that here." I clench my fists. "Fairy Tail is my family." I grit my teeth. "It hurt so much to leave…this place is where my fondest memories lie…with mama and Erza…with everyone here." I hold my head up high. "But I know if mom was alive, she'd support my decisions." I turn away and head for the door. "Goodbye father…maybe one day I can actually talk to you…and you can respect my life choices."

* * *

I stare at my mother's grave and I gently place down the flowers. "I found her mama…I wish you could meet her again. I wish you could meet all of my new family," I whisper. I hang my head, listening to the wind blowing and the chirping of birds. Wait…is that running footsteps? Natsu's shouts?

I gaze up and see Gray, Natsu, Happy and Erza racing towards me. "Guys!?" I call. They stop just short of tackling me.

"You said you were going home…We were worried you wouldn't come back!" Natsu cried.

"We wanted to make sure your father didn't hurt you," Gray says gruffly.

"It's good to see you're okay…"Erza whispers. She smiles softly and I look down, hiding my blush. She looks at the headstone.

"You were here to visit your mother's grave!?" Natsu looks at me.

"Y-yeah…"I stutter out and look down.

Erza walks closer to the headstone. "Layla…" she mumbles. I feel my heart stop for a second. Does she remember?

"Erza?" I whisper.

"This city is big!" Gray hollers.

"Oh, this is just the garden. My family owns the land up until those mountains." I point at the snow covered peaks and they all freak. Well, Erza keeps calm.

"Such a pretty sky…" she whispers and looks. "The sunset…"She looks down at the grave again as the boys go to explore the land more. "So many weeds…"She starts to pick them. "Missus Heartfilia, it's shameful how this place is kept for you!"

"Erza?" I call again. She doesn't look at me. "You okay?" She keeps silent and I see her fiddle with the stems carefully. "Hey." I grab her shoulder. She looks up and stands. She has her usual height on me. She looks down at me. I see the dandelions had been fashioned into the crown. I remember the old crown I had that had yet died and was pressed in an old book of fairy tales my mother had read Erza and me.

"The boys called you a princess…you need a crown," she mumbled quietly, her voice holding the same tone it had thirteen years ago. My heart ached at this. She had to know. Please let her know. She placed it on my head. "There…"

"Thank you," I whisper and adjust it. "Where did you learn to make these crowns?"

She presses her lips together and ponders it. "I think…my mother taught me." She looks around. "This place reminds me of my home. So familiar…"

"You were a noble?" I question, faking ignorance and curiosity.

"If I recall right," she sighs. "Our past isn't what matters…I love my life. Even if I did by any chance find a life that was of noble status, I would reject it. I love Fairy Tail. I see people like you every day." She smiles softly. "I love you, Lucy."

I blush bright red. "What?"

She takes my hand and smiles even sweeter. "A family loves one another! And you're part of the guild, so you're part of my family. I love you."

I force a smile and hug to her arm instead of holding her hand. "I love you too, Zaza."

She laughs. "Let's go home, _princess_." My heart cracks and I hug tighter to her. She's so close yet so far…if this doesn't job her memory, what will?

"That girl…"I mumble, "was she a noble?"

"Yeah, I was engaged to her. I gave her a crown like yours as a gift. We were six and four when we met. I tried to court her like we were adults and I a man. It was to be a betrothal gift. Then she gave me this." She requips the silver necklace I gave her. "It's my most prized possession."

"I think my father could help you find her," I say meekly, "he knows many noble families."

"I want to find her naturally." She has a look of determination, her eyes steely and her brow furrowed. "If it was meant to be, I'll end up with her again. She'll be in my life again and if she does come back to me…I'm never going to let her go!"

"Yeah…It's meant to be I'm sure." I smile.

* * *

 **Jude's POV**

I stare out the window as Lucy leaves with her guild mates. I see the one woman with scarlet hair and it feels all too familiar. "Is that your daughter, Thorne?" I mumble to the ghosts that always live in my life. "She had that armor…she's become like your mother like you feared. I see why Lucy would be so attached to that guild. If that's her..." I sit at my desk and stare off. "Those two girls loved to blindly and purely…childishly like I loved Layla. Loved so blindly until she passed…" I sigh. "She's so beautiful, Layla. Our daughter is truly your copy…beautiful, smart, strong and oh so stubborn! I hope that's her Erza…make all those tears seem to no longer exist in her eyes."

* * *

 **And with that, it is done. Thanks for reading and I'm sorry if you have melted and left frustrated without them finally being together!**

 **I don't know which arc should they be together. Should it be after the Tower? After Fantasia? After all that S-class and Seven-year thing? The games? More recent arcs? Should I just give up on trying to follow the story and create fluff situations to put these gaybies in? I don't know. What do you all think?**

 **-She Fell for Fiction**


	10. Kiss the Girl

**Lucy's POV**

I believe this situation has countless outcomes that I should contemplate. But why can't I? Oh right, I was assigned the role of Yanderica. I was the princess in this play. That wouldn't matter much, but my prince is no prince. Erza was to play my lover in the play. Frederick. What could possibly go wrong? I faint from embarrassment. The kiss we share on the stage turns out to be a disappointment. I get into it and she doesn't and that gives me away. If it gives me away she could be disgusted. Or this could be what gives me a chance.

Elegance took place in her as we rehearsed. She sparkled! She had the elegance only a book character written by a romanticizing writer could create. So let me describe…

Act 2, Scene 5 is where this magic took place. We approach the climax.

I dangle a few feet off the ground, helpless and needing a hero like every damsel in distress does need. Frederick has found where his love does dwell. The first of the men of Siegheart is Julius. It is the first test of Frederick's love and ability.

Erza took for a bit of showmanship, her sword given a twirl at her hip with a nimble wrist before she lunged again at Gray. "I will not leave without my love!" Erza hissed as she blocked a hit, twisting her sword and pushing Gray back. This was all a practiced dance to her. She knew the way to move and yet she showed struggle. That was just her character that struggled.

"Ah! But here you struggle at the first step!" Gray kicked her back and swung his sword. "She will be ours to keep! Her father's kingdom will belong to me and my monster!"

Erza exaggerated her breath, though it wouldn't be a surprised if her breath did turn to panting due to her chest bound during this dress rehearsal. "I…will not leave without her. Either we both get out or I die trying to give her freedom." She looked up from the floor, for she acted slumped. Her weight rested on the sword she had. It was a rapier with a blue blade and a golden handle. I saw her profile, the sharp features, and her eyes glinted with power and dedication. The character suited her, for she was a true knight in shining armor.

"I suppose it will be the latter." Gray walked over to her and raised his sword. The clear blade whizzed through the air only to be stopped before it got a hit in. Erza had blocked, her blade turned so the edge hit Gray's sword, slicing the ice and shattering it.

"Not now. I will not die here! Not when my princess awaits me so far from here." Erza gave an exaggerated swing, missing Gray but he goes down with a cry. It looked real to the audience.

"You'll s-see that you should go back…if you get a brain before you're killed by that monster!" He fell to the ground and lights went down.

It goes to her fighting Natsu in a dragon costume. She ducks flames and eventually gets a hit through the back of the dragon. The dragon was Seigheart. Natsu complained that not all dragons were evil plotters.

Erza scaled up to a ledge to take the risking leap to hook the rope I dangled from, her weight triggering the pulley to move down until we were on the ground. "My princess…"She breathed and cut me loose.

"Oh, Frederick, thank heavens you found me!" I hug to her. It was nice to have a hug from Erza without her armor. She felt soft and warm. Her skin smelled like vanilla and was warm. Her gloves were smooth velvet and brushed my neck.

"You're safe now, Yanderick." She grabbed my chin and tipped my head up. "Safe to be my queen now."

"Prince Frederick…If this was a ploy to become the king—"

"I didn't you save you to get the throne; I saved you for love. I love you, Yanderica. I wish for you to be mine. I will be loyal to you if you take my proposal."

"But I-"

"Need another reason? Do I have to prove it that I want you to mine and mine alone?" Erza's voice was smooth and she fell into her character all too naturally. The way she looked at me so adoringly made me blush. "Take this to heart and know you're the only woman with my love." She grabbed my chin, tipping my head up. Even in heels, I was shorter than her. I had always been shorter.

She was going to kiss me; it was something written in that we had never really done while rehearsing, but now it was a dry run of what we would perform for the public. I had been looking forward to it. I hoped that this would be what could bring Erza back to her full memory; bring my knight back to me. It would be a real kiss…but we were cut off. "No kiss!" Labian shouted.

"What!?" I screech, breaking character.

"Lucy…"Erza stepped back, shocked by my outburst. "You alright?"

"Hmph!" I huffed and looked aside. "If we've never kissed before the performance, it'll be awkward."

"I'm preserving the passion and shock for the performance. It's their first kiss ever. Better is that you two have not kissed each other." That is not the case, though! At least not for me, I have already had the butterflies of a first kiss. Now, what feelings I had were the anticipation of a reuniting one.

"I'm fine with waiting until our performance tomorrow night." Erza looked down at me. "It will add to the moment. Okay?" She grins. "I mean we've worked so hard. Let's give it our all!"

"Okay…"I smile weakly.

 **Erza's POV**

The night of opening night came upon us quickly. Before I knew it we were dressing to go on stage. Lucy was already in place but I still was slipping into the layered outfit I had.

"You nervous about the kiss?" Gray asks as he buttons up his jacket.

My fingers fumbled as I tried to button my jacket. "O-oh…the kiss?" I squeak out.

"I mean, it's obvious you've never been kissed." He makes a face at his outfit as he looks in the mirror.

"What would you know!? I've been kissed before!" I cut a glare at him.

"With who?" He looks at me. He shrinks once he sees my expression.

"Not your damn business." I punch his arm.

He cringes in pain. "Ah! Fine." He steps out.

I nervously run my fingers through my hair, pulling it back before trying it in a black ribbon. I stare in the mirror. "I am going to kiss Lucy." I blink and sink down onto a stool. "Oh my god…why is my heart racing?" My breath feels quick. "I'll feel her lips against mine…holy crap!" I rest my weight on the vanity. "But the only other kiss I've gotten was over a decade ago. She'll hate the way I kiss." I pause. "Why does it matter!? W-why am I so worried about kissing Lucy? It's Lucy." I grin slightly. "It's Lucy…"

I hear someone tapping at the door. "It's time to get into places!" Labian called.

"Okay!" I sigh. I slip my scabbard into my belt and go to my place. _You're going to kiss Lucy…_ My mind whispered. My blood goes cold and I feel clammy.

I step out onto the stage. _I have a line…wait, what's my line? I am blanking out!_ My legs tremble.

I hear whispers from backstage. "She forgot her lines!" I hear people murmuring in the crowd. They want to see this entire performance. They want to see the kiss. A kiss between Lucy and I!

The show was a disaster from there.

"I can't believe I got stage fright!" I lament.

"It was a disaster!" Cana chuckled.

"Lucy said you did so well during rehearsals," Mira pointed out. "What happened?"

"W-well…we were supposed to kiss for the first time during the opening night." I blush and gulp from the drink Mira placed in front of me. I ignore the burning, just happy the alcohol allows my head to stop buzzing.

"You were afraid to kiss her?" Mira giggled. "Oh Erza, you're hopeless!"

"Have you even kissed anyone?" Cana poured into my glass from her barrel of liquor.

"Once…but I was six years old and it was a little peck," I confess. I gulp down my second drink.

"Woo! Little Erza was getting it." Cana slaps my back. I cut a glare at her.

"What was the girl's name?" Mira smiles at me.

"Don't remember," I hiccup. I slam my cup on the bar. "I should've kissed Lucy!"

"She's already reached where she taps out," Cana mused.

"I'm gonna kiss her!" I get up. "I failed to do it on stage, I'm gonna do it now. I gotta prove it to myself and to my adoring fans."

"Maybe you should wait until you're sober," Mira told me.

"Silence peasant!" I stumble out. "A princess waits."

 **Lucy's POV**

 _Dear mom,_

 _I guess this last job was not the worst the team has faced. Yet, I feel humiliated and angered. The entire thing was a disaster. We ended up destroying the theater. Erza had also forgotten her lines. That led to her failing to kiss me. I was looking forward to that kiss._

I tap my pen against the paper. A slam against my door stopped my train of thought.

"Coming!" I call and quickly get up. I open the door just to have Erza push my back in. Her cheeks were flushed but her eyes gleamed with determination and…rage? Oh god, what was going to happen?

"Lucy, I fucked this up." She hugged me close. I could smell cheap booze on her breath.

"What do you mean? And you're drunk, Erza…" I try to get out of her grip, but she, of course, is too strong for me to overpower.

"I got nervous and ruined the show!" She slurred. She pushed me to my bed. Oh god, what is she planning?

"Don't punish yourself over that. A lot of things went wrong," I reassure, hoping that'll call her off. I start to sit up.

"We didn't kiss!" She pushes me back onto the bed and gets on top of me.

"Eh? It…it doesn't matter." I try to push her off.

"You wanted to kiss," she pointed out.

"What!?" I blush and look around for help. Now would be the perfect time for Natsu to break in. "I didn't! I mean…I didn't dread it, but I wasn't looking forward to it! No! I mean, we're friends and not lovers."

"Still, I feel bad. My princess didn't get a kiss." She leans over my face and her eyes gaze at my lips. She's really going to do it!

"Your…princess…."I look away bashfully.

"Yes, for I'm a knight," she growled, almost sounding angry. She gripped my chin and her eyes were locked onto mine, freezing me in place.

"You're drunk…it isn't right if you kiss me," I warn.

"This is the only way I have the bravery to kiss you." She was afraid to kiss me? Titania herself was afraid of a little kiss? Well, I was blinded by anticipation. I would be afraid too if I hadn't had the memories that she had lost. She then paused. "Will this be your first kiss?"

"No." I shake my head. "Just do it."

"Who am I to reject a princess?" She leans down close. I scrunch up my nose at the smell of alcohol on her breath. I have a feeling Mira and Cana had to with Erza's current state.

My eyes flutter closed as I hear her breath slightly catch as she is about to kiss me.

Suddenly I felt her weight rest on me entirely. "Ow! Erza!" I push her off and see her eyes were closed. She curls up on the bed. "She fell asleep!" I huff and sit back. I sigh and cover her up with the comforter. "Maybe...it's best." I lean down and kiss her brow. "Goodnight, Zaza." I crawl into bed with her, basking in her body heat and attempting to get past the alcohol on her breath to smell the sweat and steely smell of her skin.

* * *

 **I couldn't pass up writing for this part of the series. It _was_ the episode that made me ship them, after all. Putting a yuri couple into a fairy tale structure is my life-blood. **

**-He Fell for Fiction**


	11. I Remember You

**Yeah, I am not giving up on this story. I don't know if I should end it here. I mean the main point was Erza not remembering her and I got more people wanting this point to work. It makes sense, saying that the scene that caused Erza to block out her past would force her in a way to remember. I had some time to work because I'm off of classes for Thanksgiving Break. I hope I can get Unethical another chapter and possibly even another for Fairy Tale before getting back. That is a pipe's dream on my part.**

* * *

 **Lucy's POV**

The cold air hit my skin as I sauntered to Erza's room. Akane's casino had piqued the interest of the boys. Pushing the door open reveals Erza standing in front of the mirror in her Heart Kreuz armor. She was bathed in the warm light of the sunset. Her eyes traveled from her reflection to me. Her eyes went from…longing to curious, as if I had snapped her out of a mindset where she was reflecting on the past.

"The guys want us to head down to the casino. Do you want to go with us, Erza?" I ask, putting on a kind smile.

"It sounds like fun." She steps back and requips into a purple dress with roses on it. She looked better than me by a longshot. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. She looks back at me after a moment. "Let's go, Lucy." She walks out, brushing past me.

Time passes; Erza spends her time at the poker table. She kept her cool and won a few hands. She kept a poker face the whole time…until the dealers changed. The man looked about our age and he dealt out the cards that spelled out the word 'death.' He addressed Erza as 'sister.'

People screamed, everything went dark, and a shot rang out through the casino.

The world blurred in pain and confusion as they took her away. Again she slipped from my grips and I was left bound in this odd soft rope that kept me from opening my keys. Helplessly I watch again as Erza is taken from my life. I have to get her back.

"Erza!" I shout and writhe, feeling drained. "We'll get you back! I swear if I have to be still bound, I'll find you!"

* * *

 **Lucy's POV**

Never in my life had I seen Erza cry. Not as a warrior or a child. She was always a solid figure. She had purpose she always followed. From a little girl, she knew how to protect the weak. Here she stood, pouring out her heart to her friends and a stranger. One eye cried, and the other had been damaged. My urge to pull her close and kiss that broken eye made me twitch. "Erza…"all I utter.

Then Sho comes back. He cries and shouts about how Erza had been lying to us. That Jellal saved everyone and Erza had gone crazy with her new power and destroyed the ships.

"Does that sound like her?" I spit without thought.

"You don't know Erza at all! All you know is this fake liar!" he shouts.

 _You know nothing about my Erza is you call her such things_ , I inwardly growl. The man I heard Erza address as Simon come in. He defends Erza and lays over Jellal's true intentions. He makes what's left of us separate to fight.

* * *

Vidaldus lays passed out. Juvia lay next to me, both of our bodies exhausted. "We did it…"I laugh.

"Juvia wonders…why did rival seem so defensive of Erza-san back when Sho-san accused her?" Juvia looks at me.

"I…you see I have interests in her like you have in Gray, but it's been a long time." I force myself upright, my muscles screaming. "I have to help her…"My limbs tremble as I stand. Fighting had drained me already. "Protect my knight."

"Lucy…"Juvia stared at me in shock.

"Get out of here with them. I'm not leaving without Erza."

"Juvia sees a bad outlook for Lucy if she doesn't leave," Juvia whispers.

"I would rather die protecting her then leaving her here again." I clench my fists. "Get out of here. Get Gray, Natsu, and Happy out of here." I run off, heading to find Jellal. I know that's where I'll find my Erza.

* * *

 **Erza's POV**

Jellal smirked as the etherion swallowed me into it. His web of lies has been so deep. He's won against me. After all these years, my hope to know the person who kept me sane as they drained me of memories is the one who will damn me. His face the last I see and his touch the last I know…I should've slit that long throat and stained that sky blue hair crimson. My fingers itch to know a blade, but I am frozen. To die in such a cold place…

Suddenly a light rips me from my final resting place and the world is at my feet again. I feel soft and scratched arms grip to me, trembling to hold dead weight. I look at the soft face and wide eyes. "Lucy…"I breathe. She lowers me down. "Get out of here." I grip to her.

"I'm not leaving without you." She pulls her key, summoning Loke and Aquarius. Her two strongest spirits, after obviously having gone through a battle recently; it would be too much for a newer mage like her.

"Lucy, don't push your limits!" I cry. Her whip goes from her belt. Jellal keeps dodging Loke's hits and flies from water fired to him. I was so used to hearing those two having something to say, but they just worked, as if they just sensed now was not the time.

Jellal zoomed passed the attack of Loke and Aquarius…just to fly into a hard hit with Lucy's whip. The leather bit into his tattooed cheek, splitting a line I didn't think Lucy as strong enough to make. Jellal roared in pain and anger. With a hit, he sent her flying into a pillar of crystal. It shattered from the force.

"Lucy!" I get up and grabbed my abandoned sword. A quick charge at Jellal fails a hit, my sword hitting crystal and the structure groaning. More anger driven swings lead to more damage and a shaky structure.

"Stop destroying my work!" Jellal knocks me back. I skid back and grip to my side where his blow landed, feeling hot pain grip the nerves.

"She isn't strong enough," Loke whispers to Aquarius. They started to disappear.

"New plan!" Lucy shouted and she held her hand out to them, forcing them there. "Destroy the structure." She tightened her grip on the whip in her hands, despite them trembling. The spirits were out of sight before I could speak.

"Lucy you need to go," I hiss. I straightened and ignored the blood running from my side. I was surprised how I was worse for wear than Lucy. She had bruises and a side she couldn't rest her full weight on, but I could hardly stand.

"No."

"Can't you listen to me for once!?" I cry.

"How about you listen to me like you used to, you damn knight!" She glared at me. She moved towards me, being a weak barrier between myself and Jellal. Used to? She had never a wish of me. Nothing I could follow or violate in the near year I have known her. The only woman who had orders to me were childish. Hold her. Cuddle her. Keep her warm. Find her. Dance with her. All it got me was a necklace and a kiss on the cheek.

Jellal looked frustrated as all hell. He knew those spirits were his enemy more than we were if they went to destroy. The structure groaned already in instability. "I'll kill you both!" He summoned an orb of dark light. "Altairis!" It launched at us. My fingers wrapped around Lucy's wrist to yank her down. It was hopeless.

But the hit never came to us. A stronger shield came up. A wall of a man—Simon. "Simon!" I cried in the panicked realization. Strong as he was, he still crumbled as if he were frail. I pulled myself to him and took his hand. His face was contorted with pain, but he still flashed a weak smile.

"I knew you would come back, you know," he coughed. Blood dripped down his chin and along his jaw. "I always loved you. But I knew you wouldn't feel the same."

"Simon…"I tear up and hold his hand in both of mine. "You should've run."

"She couldn't help you. Not at this point in her life." I heard a small huff behind me. His eyes start to close.

"No! Stay. Simon stay with me," I beg. "I can't lose anyone else to this tower!"

"I wish I could've seen her again." His hand went slack. The beat I remembered having my cheek pressed to years ago on nights of nightmares is suddenly gone. A deafening throbbing in my ears replaced it. He was not peaceful, but scarily content with his death. All to save me. He died to save me.

And she was too. But I can't lose another to him. I looked over to Lucy. She just stared. She looked exhausted and Jellal was laughing.

"Your spirits finally fled! You can't fight now can you, stellar mage!" He roared. Blood dripped from his cheek from where she hit him still. It took one more move for him to knock her out, a quick kick. I heard no crack of her jaw or nose, but she till fell like a ragdoll.

I growled and requipped a double edged sword. "This ends now," I hiss. The structure shifted and pieces fell into the ocean. Jellal looked almost desperate when he snapped back from his sadistic joy. But it was too late to see the hit. I got the hit on him, even if my bones were just was done with fighting on as the R system was. He tried to fly off and I lunged in a rage. I yanked him back when I grabbed his ankle. I threw him into a pillar he shattered on impact. "This won't happen Jellal!" I hit him in the temple with the hilt and the force that carried traveled past his body sent a growing crack. The power went from seeping to pouring out.

I curse. It will explode if not controlled. I drop my sword and make my way to the orb I almost met my end before. I touch the smooth surface and then push. My arm is absorbed as if dipped into melted glass, but it was cold as the ocean water that I swore I was swimming in happy not even a day ago. I cry out as I get pulled in more, my legs coming into to it. All that was out was part of my torso and my left arm.

"Za…za…"

I freeze and look at Lucy. That nickname. It sounds familiar. Warm…

She was just waking up. She started to stand and her eyes went wide. "Erza!" She ran over.

"It'll go. I have to stop this."

"No! Don't go. Don't leave me again," she cried. I placed my hand on her cheek.

"I want to save you. You deserve to live, Lucy."

"No! I don't want to live if it's without you. It was hard without you before." She sobbed and took my hand. I felt her tug, but I kept emerged. Before? Again.

"Lucy?"

"Stay. My knight, you have to stay. Stay with your princess. You said you would! You said you wouldn't let that girl go if you found her again. Don't let me go…"

"Lucy…" I'm yanked back and float away. All I hear is water swishing and Lucy's screams of my name.

I see flashes of the past. I see the girl in my dreams. But her face is clearer. I see the freckles I remember naming in her bed and the blush on her cheeks when I first kissed her in the ballroom of her manor.

Lucy was that girl. Her giggle filled my fond memories and her soft lips took my first kiss. She was the only girl I said I loved. I was her knight. She was my princess. The girl I swore I would never let go if I found her…had become my first friend. The girl I had hated to admit was taking over the parts of me I had reserved for that girl. I just started to fall for the same girl again.

I see her again. The real age she is. She doesn't have that smile and those rosy cheeks are tear stained. She howled like an injured animal in Gray's arms in front of a grave. Mine.

Rain fell so hard it bounced off the cobblestone. She whimpered of not saving me. I saw a dead crown of dandelions clutched in her hands that looked like they were pressed in a book for years.

I wanted to hold her. I wanted to kiss away her tears and hold her. The hours passed and she just stayed. Each member left after placing red lilies near my grave. She sat in front of the grave and touched her fingers to the marble. She placed a red rose. "You preferred roses over all else. I remember the pin prick from when I tried to pick you one. The first time you tried to stop my tears." She wiped her cheeks. "Guess that won't happen again, Zaza." She pulled a necklace from her neck, breaking the chain in the process. "No reuniting like you talked so fondly of. No last kiss even. No kiss at all. Because we were both terrified." She tipped her head back as the rain fell. "I guess this is accurate to how I feel. It rained the day you went missing as well. I didn't know for months after. I didn't know what actually happened. I can't believe I hated you…"Her body shudders in sobs. "I miss you so much. It hurts."

"Lucy…"I reach for her but I could never reach her. I cover my eyes and hang my head.

A warm hand suddenly touches my shoulder. I turn and feel yanked out, a burning pain consuming me.

* * *

 **Lucy's POV**

Waking up in the hotel wasn't unexpected. I knew the story of what happened, even if my weakness made it fuzzy. Jellal took Erza's place and the tower all but disappeared. We were found by the shore by Natsu, Gray, and the others.

Erza lay next to me. She was more banged up than I was somehow. She was awake, though. She was propped up on her arm that wasn't as wrapped and was looking down at me. Her other hand weakly ran its fingers through my hair.

"Erza…"I whisper.

"Shh," she soothed. Her deep voice almost sounded motherly. "Lulu, you have to rest."

"Lulu?" I whisper.

"Yeah. That's what I called you." She smiles.

"Wait." I sit up quicker than I should've. My head spins for multiple reasons as I look at her. "Do you…"

"Remember our betrothal? Do I remember dancing in your house and cuddling because I was cold? Do I remember kissing you and that being my only kiss?" She arches an eyebrow. "Yes. I do." I notice suddenly that she was closer.

I blush. "Erza…"

"My princess, I found you." She places her hand on my cheek. "Goddess I can't believe I couldn't put it together. That smile and your eyes…they're hard to forget. I couldn't." She leans in.

"Do you love me?" I whisper. She stops, obviously going in to kiss me.

"You know I do. As the girl of my first love and the woman, I've come to need in my life. I love the woman and the girl. Do you still want me? I'm not that girl. I'm a bit worse for wear it seems." She looks down at herself. Her body was bandaged and scarred. But perfect.

"You still have what I love about you. Your care of others and that shyness you possess. Though, I hope to get that joy reserved for me back."

She smiles softly. "Yeah, you certainly bring joy." She pulls me close and kisses me. My body melts into it and all pain is my last thought. Her lips were warm but chapped.

She pulled away a moment later and lies back. "Zaza, I'm cold." I pout.

"No, you're not." She pulls me close anyway. I snuggle into her, careful of her injured ribs. "Needy princess."

"Loyal knight." I kiss her cheek and giggle when she blushes. She finally remembered.

 **Erza's POV**

I stare at the beauty before me. She had fallen asleep again. I stroke her hair again and rub over her freckled cheeks. I can't believe that I was living with the girl of my dreams and past. I know there will be more twists, but right now my problems felt lesser.

I kiss her brow. "I love you, Lulu." I cuddle her and close my eyes, wanting to sleep before I know the boys will bust in.


End file.
